


Caicos Nights

by Writing_is_my_jam123



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Beach Holidays, Best Friends, Espionage, F/F, F/M, Friendship, Relationship(s), Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-11
Updated: 2017-10-11
Packaged: 2019-01-16 02:03:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12333246
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Writing_is_my_jam123/pseuds/Writing_is_my_jam123
Summary: Sun, sand and sea - that's exactly what Clarke envisions on her first holiday abroad to the Caribbean.But her plans change when the hot, mysterious brunette from her flight out suddenly lands in her life.Lexa doesn't expect much from her 'business as usual' work trip, but she uncovers a secret that impacts hers and the people around hers chance of survival - will they make it out alive?OrThe Clexa Holiday, Espionage Romance nobody asked for.





	Caicos Nights

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys, 
> 
> So this is my attempt at a Clexa fic with an espionage undertone!
> 
> I hope you enjoy, and let me know if you have any suggestions!
> 
> Thanks

Clarke sits with a thump and winces as she realises the chair is little more than a glorified lump of wood. After she recovers, she nervously takes in her surroundings and watches other people as they come and go around her. Her knee begins to jump up and down repeatedly as she looks down at her watch for the 5th time in as many minutes. She quickly reaches in her bag again to feel the smooth leather and is not surprised when she feels it, for she knows it is there and she is just doing it as an exercise to occupy her slightly shaky hands.

You can do this, she thinks to herself, eyes closed as she takes a deep breath and holds it before gently releasing it. As she does so, her eyes slowly open and she focuses on a girl sitting on the opposite side of the room that had not been there before.  
Clarke watches from across the room, her slender hands rapidly typing away on a small laptop, the screen reflecting on the lenses of her glasses and casting an unnatural glow across her face and the tendrils of dark hair that have escaped her plait. Clarke is fascinated by the girl’s intense concentration and her hands suddenly itch for a pencil to capture the girl’s eyebrows drawn together and her plump lower lip clasped between her teeth. Clarke is surprised by this desire; she has only felt the urge to draw something a handful of times since…. Well since that.

After about ten minutes, Clarke notices the girl suddenly snap the laptop lid down hard and reach down to stow it away in the backpack by her feet. She watches as the brunette rummages around, and pulls out a pair of headphones, regaining her seated position and she looks up at Clarke simultaneously with a hard, impassive expression. 

Clarke realises she has been caught staring and quickly looks to her feet, as she feels the heat rising in her cheeks. When she thinks it may be safe enough to look up again, she notices the stranger is missing. Clarke looks around and can just make out her slender frame in the crowd, rucksack slung over her shoulder as she confidently strides away.  
As Clarke tries to think of another way to distract herself, she hears a tinny voice over the tannoy announcing the boarding of her flight.  
With a sigh of relief, Clarke picks up her things and walks over to the gate.

 

**----------------**----------------------** 

 

The narrow aisle is difficult to navigate as people step out of their rows to stow their bags above their heads. An elderly gentleman nearly hits Clarke in the shin with his walking stick as he abruptly turns and awkwardly pushes past her to seat himself in the row they had just walked by. Trying not to show her annoyance, Clarke shuffles by and scans the numbers above her head, trying to stop her handbag bashing the edge of each seat she passes.

Eventually she spots her designated seat number and stops abruptly when she realises someone is already in the row. 

The woman.

Clarke flushes a little as she remembers the look on the womans face when she had caught Clarke out, however now she seems to have no interest in Clarkes arrival, her eyes closed. Clarke shuffles into the row and seats herself next to her, who doesn’t even glance her way. The brunettes music is faintly playing through her headphones, and Clarke strains her ears to see if she recognises the music. 

Feeling awkward, Clarke doesn’t know whether to introduce herself or not, so she awkwardly deliberates and decides to think about her surroundings. She digs around in the pocket in front of her, pulling out the various items before grimacing as she realises what the sick bag is for. With an air of repulsion, she flicks it away and leans back into her seat with a sigh.  
She really needs to calm down. Clarke looks across to the woman beside her and guiltily takes in her side profile. Damn, Clarke thinks, as her eyes take in the womans high cheekbones, lingering on her strong jawline. Suddenly the brunette sighs next to her and slowly opens her eyes whilst Clarke flashes hers away quickly, feigning interest in the abandoned sick bag. 

This is going to be a long flight.

 

**--------------**--------------**

Two hours in, and Clarkes nerves have settled somewhat. She’s not sure if that’s due to the fact she feels used to the plane now or the 2 vodka and cokes she had downed. Clarke smiled weakly at the air hostess’ dubiously raised eyebrow as she handed back the empty cup and bottle, having finished it all before she had even moved onto the next row.  
The brunette next to Clarke had resumed her initial stance, eyes closed, head back almost immediately after the plane had taken off which Clarke was thankful for, because it meant she hadn’t seen her freak out when they left the tarmac. 

This good looking stranger seemed so calm and collected, Clarke really wanted to save face in front of her. She turned to look out the window and noticed the stranger was awake again and doing the same. Clarke can’t help but notice her hair is caught up in her headphones, and it takes all Clarkes will power not to reach out and untangle the brunette locks from the wire. Because that would most definitely give off the creepy vibes Clarke hoped she wasn’t projecting. 

Lost in thought, Clarke again hadn’t realised she was staring until the woman lazily turns head to look around, a look of surprise crossing her face as she realises Clarke is looking. Clarke feels her cheeks flush as she realises she’s been caught again but then her eyes glimpse the brunettes that are no longer looking at her and she tries to stifle a gasp; the womans eyes are such a vivid shade of green that it catches her off guard. She needs to do something that doesn’t make her look stary and creepy.

“What are you listening to?” she asks the stranger, smiling weakly as she tries to feign nonchalance whilst internally cringing at her attempts at conversation.

The stranger had been looking past her into the aisle, her mind clearly elsewhere, when she turns to look at Clarke, eyebrows arching in surprise as she gently lifts a headphone away from her ear.  
She speaks softly, “I’m sorry?”

Clarke wrings her hand, realising all hopes of her appearing cool were off and perhaps it had been stupid to make conversation with the stranger who was clearly thinking about something important.

“I’m sorry, please ignore me this is my first time flying and I’m a little nervous” she responds, speaking quickly as she waves her hands around. She looks down to her knees and can again feel a slight blush colouring her neck.

The stranger makes a small noise in her throat that sounds like a scoff and she slides her headphones down so they rest around her neck.  
Neither of them speak for a while and Clarke silently berates herself for looking like an idiot.

“Well, it was pretty obvious, so congratulations on finally taking the plunge” the stranger finally speaks, lazily glancing across to Clarkes face with an impassive look.

“Excuse me?” Clarkes head whips up, a slight glare on her face. How could this girl know anything about her; she hadn’t even acknowledged Clarke until now.

“You know, on flying. You said this was your first time so, you know, well done with deciding to finally go ahead”. The stranger said with a shrug and a cocky look on her face.

Clarkes mouth opened and closed, in a state of disbelief at the stranger’s lack of courtesy. 

Who does she think she is?! This girl doesn't know a thing about her!

“And what makes you assume that I’ve decided to not go ahead with flying in the past?!” Clarke demands, her cerulean eyes shining as she fully faces the stranger, with a look of angry indignation on her face.

Clarke expects the stranger to look away, perhaps ashamed, but to her disbelief, the stranger gives a smug grin, scoffs and shakes her head as she resumes looking out the window.

Severely pissed now, Clarke doesn’t know how to react to the brunette’s impertinence.

“Are you going to answer me?!” she asks in an incredulous tone.

The brunette slowly turns back to face Clarke, the look of defiance firmly on the blondes face as her jaw sets.

The brunette smiles smugly again.  
“You really want to know how I know I’m right?” she asks in the same soft voice with an air of confidence, which only fuels Clarkes annoyance.

“Well yeah, I want to know how a stranger who’s barely been courteous thinks she knows shit about me!” She replies sharply.

The stranger sighs, and thinks for a moment before she shrugs her shoulders indifferently.  
“There’s only really two reasons people don’t fly.”

The brunette begins, in her soft voice. 

”They won’t or they can’t. Your passport is worn, which indicates it’s not brand new. If you didn’t ever want to fly, then why would you own a passport because surely it would never be used? There are plenty of other forms of ID you could own. People who can’t fly, generally are unable to because they can’t afford to travel. Judging by your Gucci sunglasses, brand new iPhone and Michael Kors handbag you’re not too precious about, plus all the other expensive stuff you’re wearing, I think it’s safe to say for you, money is most probably not the reason you’ve been unable to fly.”

At this, Clarke self-consciously touches the sunglasses balancing precariously on her head.

The brunette continues, gaining confidence in her thoughts “So I deduce that, in the past, you’ve certainly tried to fly, but something’s stopped you every time. Perhaps an emotional reason, judging by the way you looked like you were going to pass out on take-off anyway. 

Would you care for me to carry on?”

The stranger finishes by glancing at Clarke before returning to look out the window, the barely concealed cocky smirk never leaving her face.

Clarke’s face, on the other hand, is a picture of shock as she opens and closes her mouth several times and she doesn’t speak for several moments.

“No thanks Dr Phil” Clarke mutters to herself, looking away into the aisle, as her righteous indignation fades away and is replaced by anger at herself.

She is annoyed that this stranger could so perfectly read her like an open book when she had so carefully tried to conceal her feelings over the years. Several minutes pass, in which Clarke feels a mixture of emotions, and she glances to the chunky watch on her wrist, gently running her index finger over the slightly scratched face.

The stranger glances to Clarke and notes the slightly wistful expression on her face and sighs, a pang of pity rising in her chest.

“Clark.” She states simply before opening her mouth to say something else.

Clarkes head snaps up, a look of indignation on her face again as she gets in there first.

“Look, I don’t know who you think you are, but you can’t just start playing Sherlock, deducing all this stuff about me and then be creepy, using my name like that!” A hint of anger in her eyes making them glint bluer than before.

The stranger has the courtesy to look surprised for a minute before she leans forward and slowly removes the headphones from around her neck, before passing them to Clarke, her emerald eyes never leaving Clarke’s.

The casualness of her action and lack of response confuses and annoys Clarke as she stares right back at the brunette, before scoffing; this girl is really something else.  
She opens her mouth to refuse, but the brunette speaks first. 

“You asked me what music I was listening to; well it’s an artist called Clark. Here listen, it may take your mind of things” she gestures again with the headphones.

“Oh”

Clarkes shoulders drop and she feels the shame overcome her, the blush once again back on her face – she doesn’t think she’s blushed as much in the last year as she has in these few hours in the presence of the mysterious brunette.  
She weakly takes the headphones.

“And I didn’t know your name actually, but I do now…. Clarke”. The stranger says in her soft voice and smirks with a playful glint in her eye, seemingly unperturbed by Clarkes small outburst and feisty behaviour.

Clarke lifts the headphones over her head. Quickly, the stranger reaches out, and neatly lifts the sunglasses from the top of her head.

“Wouldn’t want to break these, would we?” the playful glint still in her eye. 

Clarkes face deepens another shade of crimson and she mumbles a sorry and thanks as she shoves them on over her ears as the stranger beside her is barely able to contain a shit eating grin. Clarke feels guilty at snapping at the woman; after all, she thought, Clarke had invited her to speak about her observations. 

Clarke sighs as she looks back to the stranger and nods her head.

"Thanks for the distraction" she says quietly.

"Don't mention it" the brunette says with a shrug, eyes already focused on the view from the window again.

Well, this is definitely an interesting first flight Clarke thinks to herself.

 

**--------------------**----------------------**

 

Clarke sighs as she taps her foot with her arms crossed and looks to the chunky watch on her wrist. 

“Okay maam, I think you’re good to go” the burly security guard finally says whilst shutting the lid on Clarke’s suitcase.

“Thankyou” she states, exasperated, rushing over to the suitcase to attempt zipping up the overloaded suitcase. 

The guard nods and removes his latex gloves before presenting her with her passport. After finally making the two zips meet, she gratefully takes her passport and swings her handbag onto her shoulder whilst pulling her case behind her, out of the customs department. Before long, she’s making her way across the arrivals hall and heads for the double doors. She pulls her heavy bag through the double doors and squints at the stream of bright sunshine that warms her face.  
Clarke instantly feels the oppressive humidity clinging to her jeans and jacket. Wow, she thinks, it is super hot, she feels glad that she has packed plenty of shorts and vest tops. She looks around at the taxis and cars parked before her, seeing people coming and going. 

The blonde frowns, nose crinkling as she reaches into her bag for her sunglasses, pulling her suitcase along. Just as she finds them, she thuds into something hard. 

“Oomph” she exclaims, and drops her suitcase in shock as her sunglasses fall to the floor.

As she stands there dazed, she looks down to see a flash of brown.

“Anyone would think you didn’t like these” said a soft voice as the stranger stands back up with a cocky look and locks her emerald eyes with the surprised blue ones in front of her.

“Oh. Uh, thanks” Clarke laughs nervously as she reaches out to take the sunglasses from the brunettes outstretched dainty hand.

“Sorry for bumping into you, I wasn’t paying attention” she apologises with a blush as she reaches to pick up her suitcase.

“Don’t mention it, Clarke” she shrugs and turns to walk away. 

Clarke shivers at the way she says her name.

Clarke straightens back up and watches the brunettes retreating, and takes a minute to appreciate her toned figure. Shaking her head to refocus her attention, she calls out after her.  
“Hey, don’t you think it’s a little unfair I don’t know your name?” standing quickly and holding her arm above her face to shield the sun, her now forgotten sunglasses in her hand.

The stranger stops and slowly turns to look at the blonde before her, the glint back in her eye.

“Depends what you class as unfair, doesn’t it?” she shrugs one shoulder, a playful smirk on her face as the sun shines behind her highlighting the dark brown locks flowing around her face and begins to turn again.

“See you around” she says casually whilst Clarke stares dumbly at the girl before her and bites her lip as she struggles to keep her eyes off the woman’s ass.

“Oh, it’s Lexa by the way” she calls out over her shoulder and waves her hand before walking off with an extra sway to her hips.

“Lexa” Clarke says to herself, testing the name by rolling it around her mouth. 

She lifts her suitcase handle again and continues to walk dazed in the direction she had been, although she wasn’t sure if she was going the right way.

 

“Clarke”? after a few minutes of aimless wandering, she hears a deep voice calling her name. She whips her head around with a huge grin on her face, her blonde curls bouncing around her shoulders.

She drops her suitcase again, this time out of excitement, and runs at the tall, dark stranger behind her with her arms outstretched.

“Wells!” she screams, landing in his arms and squealing as she squeezes him tightly.

“It’s so great to see you!” he pulls back to look at her face, large hands still firmly clasping her upper arms. He looks earnestly with a wide grin on her face before she laughs and throws herself into his embrace once again.

He releases a deep, throaty laugh and releases her before stooping to take her suitcase.

“Firstly, who was that?” he asks with a quizzical look on his face, pointing his thumb over his shoulder in the direction Clarke had just been.

“Oh, no one, I just, uh bumped into her” Clarke mumbles, her face turning slightly pink.

Wells laughs again.  
“Okay, well come on, I’m parked over here” he says with a smile, turning on his heel. 

Clarke follows excitedly.

“So how was your flight over?” Wells asks, turning to look at Clarke, concern etched onto his kind face and his dark brown eyes crinkled at the corners.

“Um, it was actually fine” Clarke says with a shrug and a small smile on her face as she thinks about the stranger. Lexa.

“Oh good. I was worried I’d get a call from the airport police, because they’d had to restrain you or something” he jokes, whilst Clarke gently bumps his shoulder.

“Oh hush, I was fine! Calm and collected as ever” she winks. 

“Although they did want to search my bag when I landed. “ she says after a minute thoughtfully.

“Really”? Wells asks, as he pulls his keys from his pocket and bleeps at the row of cars parked in front of them.  
“Normally they’re really chill. Perhaps they thought you were hot and wanted to see what kind of underwear you wear” he says with a wink and opens the boot of the black Mercedes they approach.

“Oh shut up” Clarke says with a laugh and slaps his arm fondly. “Damn, nice wheels you’ve got here” she says with an appreciative look, taking in the alloy wheels and sleek body.

“Thanks” he says, rounding the car to get in the drivers seat as Clarke follows suit and opens the passenger door and hops in.

“I guess that’s what you get for being the son of a big businessman in the Caribbean” she glances over, knowing that it will elicit an eye roll from him.

“Yeah whatever, he thinks by doing this he’s going to win father of the year or something. Too bad he missed out on that 14 years ago” he says with a humourless laugh. 

Clarke looks at him in sympathy, Wells and his father have always had a strained relationship.

“Anyway, tell me all about home. What’s going on, who’s doing what. Give me the lowdown” Wells says with a smile, focusing on the road before him as he pulls out of the airport carpark and allows Clarke to begin her updates on their childhood friends and their plans.

 

15 minutes later and Wells is pulling off the main road onto a well-kept gravel road, passing between two white washed columns with dark gates already wide open, a smart plaque declaring it ‘Dawn Beach’. 

Clarke tails off in her conversation as Wells smoothly crawls along the gravel road spread between a dense canopy of green trees and bushes. They continue for a few minutes, and Wells smiles as he glances over to his lifelong friend who is currently staring out her window.

The trees began to clear as the gravel turns to smooth paving blocks and a circular drive way appears before them, a large palm tree stationed in the middle, leaves swaying in the gentle breeze. A brilliantly white building with a red tiled roof comes into view behind the driveway and Clarke gasps at the sight of the three storey building, taking in the stone archway covered in a verdant climbing vine over a tiled stairway leading up to beautifully carved wooden double doors.

“Woooow” Clarke sighs as Wells chuckles. He sweeps round the drive way and carries on along the path as a white garage door slowly opens and Wells drives smoothly in, parking in the only empty spot left next to the collection of cars. Drawing to a stop, Wells kills the engine and looks across to Clarke with a smile. 

“It’s really great to have you here” he says gently.

“It’s great to be here. Thanks for not giving up on asking me” Clarke says, patting his arm.

“Well, now you are here, there is so much I have to show you” Wells says as he opens the car door and jumps out after popping the boot.

He grabs the suitcase and gracefully places it on the floor, as if it weighed nothing although Clarke knows that is definitely not the case.  
He leads her over to the door, their footsteps and the suitcase wheels echoing in the garage.

Wells opens the door for Clarke and ushers her through into a spacious hallway with several doors leading off.

“Now, I have a proposal for you” Wells begins before turning to face Clarke.

“I’m listening..” she says with a smile on her face.

“Well, we have two room options for you, oh, well technically three” Wells eyes crinkle as he looks at Clarke.

“We have two rooms down here which are the guest bedrooms, however I was worried you might find it a bit creepy here as you’ll be the only one on this level, so if you do then you can take my room which is the next level up, on the same level as the pool, kitchen and living room. Dad has the top floor to himself, so, really, it’s up to you where you'd feel comfortable?” he says questioningly, scratching the back of his neck.

“Oh no, no, down here will be fine! I don’t want to kick you out your room. I mean, won’t I be the only one on your level too?” she says with a grin.

Wells expression changes to a thoughtful one “Oh yeah, I have only just realised that. Well, as long as you’re happy? If you get too freaked out, I can move into the spare one next door so you’re not alone” he says whilst continuing his walk with Clarkes suitcase over to one of the doors leading off the hallway.  
He opens the ornate wooden door with a frisson of excitement. 

“Here, is your room” he says turning to look at Clarke and waits for her to walk through the doorway before following her in with her suitcase.

“Oh wow” she says with a sigh, trailing her hand along the teak wood wardrobe on her left as she takes in the extra large double bed across the room on her right with a matching teak carved headboard.

 

The long windows to the left of the bed were letting in plenty of the glorious sunshine, giving the room a light and airy feeling. There was a glass door on the furthest wall which allowed for a view of the green shrubbery outside. 

“This is gorgeous!” she exclaims turning to look at Wells grinning face.

“Well, I’m glad you like it. I’ll leave you to unpack, but when you’re done, come upstairs and I’ll show you the rest of the place” he says, motioning with the suitcase handle he was still holding before turning on his heel and gently closing the door behind him.

Clarke sighs as a big grin splits her face before she turns and throws herself starfish style onto the massive bed before laughing to herself.

“This is going to be great” she sighs, allowing her muscles to relax as she sinks into the comfortable mattress. 

 

**___________**____________**

 

Half an hour later and Clarkes running softly up the stairs having unpacked all her things and changing into a pair of denim short shorts and a pastel yellow tee shirt. The stairs open up into another hallway, the front double doors behind her and Clarke squints as the sun streams through the open bifolding doors across the hall and a soft breeze carries the salty smell of the sea across her face.  
As she crosses the cool, cream stone tiles, she looks to her left and sees an open plan kitchen, living and dining room similarly decorated with cream walls, light stone tiles and floor to ceiling windows. Looking up, the ceiling has ornate dark wooden beams, and the overall effect is classy and quite frankly expensive.

Walking softly on bare feet, she reaches the open doors, and sees a conservatory also connected to the rooms open plan style. Clarke keeps walking until she’s directly in the sun outside, and gasps at the view before her. She is greeted by the sight of a sunbleached wooden deck with a large, rectangle turquoise pool set in the centre, a jacuzzi to the left and a tiled BBQ cabana on her right. But the thing that makes her gasp is the stunning view before her off the large balcony; a canopy of green trees that stop abruptly at white sands which give way to the vast stretch of azure blue ocean sparkling in the sun. 

“Quite a view isn’t it?” she hears the familiar tone of her friends voice behind her as he stands beside her, hands on his hips.

“It’s beautiful!” she gasps, looking from side to side. 

“We can go down there if you want?” Wells asks, looking at her with a questioning look.

“Yes! I haven’t seen a beach like this ever!” she says, clapping her hands together in excitement.

“Well let’s go!” Wells says with a laugh and leads Clarke over to a set of stairs that begin in the far left of the decking leading off the balcony down to a sand path leading through the patch of trees. Clarke gasps as she feels the soft sand between her toes, and she can’t contain her excitement as Wells leads her through the trees.

Suddenly the line of trees give way to the stretch of white beach. Clarke squeals as she runs onto the warm sand, feeling the sea breeze blowing through her wavy, blonde hair. 

“This is amazing!” she shouts across to Wells who is jogging to catch up with her.

Wells laughs and strides over to the water.  
“You should feel how warm it is!” he shouts to Clarke over his shoulder before stepping into the turquoise, clear waters.

Clarke rushes over to join him and tentatively dips her feet into the water, pleasantly surprised at the warmth. She ventures out a bit further until the water is closer to her knees than her ankles, and she looks down in surprise as several fish swim in the crystal clear water around her feet.

Clarke sighs in contentment, with a renewed enthusiasm for the next few weeks of her downtime.

 

**-------------**-----------------**

 

“Well if it isn’t Clarke Griffin” a booming voice calls out across the open plan dining room. 

A tall man approaches Clarke and Wells, interrupting their game of chess, lit by the floorlamp beside them, with his arms outstretched, a wide grin on his face and a twinkle in his dark eyes.

“Uncle Theolonius” Clarke says, trying to match the same level of enthusiasm in her voice, but failing slightly. She rises from her seat and goes over to embrace the man she had known her whole life.

“Here you are, in my Caribbean paradise!” he says squeezing her tightly before releasing her to look into her eyes.

“You did good kid, your dad would have been so proud of you” Theolonius speaks softly to her with a wistful look in his eye. 

Clarke feels her reservations about the overbearing man melt away as a lump develops in her throat. He wasn’t her dads best friend for no reason, she supposed.

“Dad, we’re hardly kids anymore” Wells said with a slight roll of his eyes, but a respectful smile on his face as he stood beside Clarke.

Theolonious raises his hands up in a defensive gesture. 

“I know, I know, but you’ll always be kids to me. Problem is, I forget you guys are getting older which means I’m forgetting about me getting older too” he says with a laugh, before clapping his strong hands down onto the shoulders of the childhood friends in front of him.

“Come on, it’s about time we had something to eat” he says, gently pushing them towards the table and chairs set up outside on a terrace adjacent to the deck.

As the sun had gone down a while ago, the sky was already a deep inky black, so all the outside lights had been switched on. Clarke gasps at the sight of the pool and deck being lit up atmospherically by a plethora of candles and wooden stake torches. As they approach the table, she can see that three spaces had been laid leaving five bare; one at the head and two either side.  
Candles had been positioned decoratively on the dark wood table, and Clarke looked up to see a beautiful chandelier hanging above, casting shadows over the tree tops that were standing tall over the balcony's edge, level with the terrace. 

Clarke could hear the breeze rustling the leaves periodically and the distant roar of the sea and she couldn’t help but think that this was almost paradisaical; certainly a far cry from how she ate dinner at home. She sat to Thelonious' left as he took the head spot, and as if he could see she was thinking of home, he began to speak.

“So tell me, how’s work treating you?” he begins, voice confident as his eyes focus on taking the napkin from his plate and sweeping it across his lap before settling to look at Clarke with his elbows resting in front of him and fingers pressed together at the tips.

Clarke follows suit, thinking briefly before she answers.

“It’s going well thanks. My residency is really shaping up to be versatile; I was just telling Wells how last week I had two emergency surgeries – one to remove a lego stuck in a kids gut and the other was a young builder with a lump of 2 by 4 sticking out his stomach. The hours are definitely long, but I really feel like I’m learning a lot” she finishes with a soft smile, the candles gently softening her features.

“Well I’m really pleased for you. Your mother must be very proud?” Theolonious asks with a questioning glance whilst reaching over to fill Clarke's wine glass with a freshly opened bottle of red. 

Although Wells no longer confided in him about Clarke and her problems like he did when he was young, Theolonious was always aware there was a tension between Clarke and Abby Griffin, not unlike the one between Wells and himself, after Clarke's father had died.

Clarke sighs, and thinks about her mother for a moment whilst almost absently taking a large gulp from her newly filled wine glass.

“Thanks. Yes, she seems to be, although we tend not to discuss work too often” she says tactfully. 

What she didn’t add was that they didn’t seem to discuss much of anything too often, and with her mother being one of the best surgeons in California, Clarke purposely steered clear of any topics relating to work to relieve the pressure her mother puts on her to do well professionally.

As she’s lost in a train of thought, a middle aged woman in a black tee shirt and dark trousers approaches the table holding three plates of steaming food. She sets the plates down in front of Clarke first, then Theolonious before finishing with Wells.

Wells laughs at Clarkes puzzled expression as she glances to the woman. 

“That’s Maria, she comes in most days to clean and cook” he says with a dubiously raised eyebrow. Wells knows it’s pretentious that they have a housemaid for the two of them, but Theolonious doesn’t even realise as he picks up the heavy set knife and fork placed either side of the warm plate.

“Bon appetit” he says with a grin, teeth glinting in the candle light against his dark skin as he tucks into the tender steak placed in front of him.

Clarke also picks up her cutlery and nods a thanks to the housemaid, Maria as she places a ceramic dish in the centre of the table filled with vegetables.  
Clarke places a piece of the steak in her mouth and sighs at the juicy, flavorful taste; it’s perfectly cooked. 

 

Clarke forces her mind to focus on the flavours and the conversation Wells had began - she had come here to get away from her homelife and enjoy her holiday and she was damn well going to do that.


End file.
